At least 13 B.C. residents among 63 Canadians killed in Tehran plane crash
Credit to Author: Scott Brown| Date: Thu, 09 Jan 2020 03:53:57 +0000
At least 13 B.C. residents were among 63 Canadians killed when a Boeing 737 plane crashed shortly after takeoff in Tehran Wednesday.
The Boeing Co. 737-800 jetliner bound for Ukraine that crashed after takeoff in Iran, was most likely brought down by an engine fire, according to a Reuters story.
Many of the passengers were due to take a connecting flight from Kyiv onwards to Toronto.
On Wednesday afternoon, Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that connecting flight landed in Toronto with 138 empty seats, indicating that in addition to the 63 Canadians who had died, a further 70-plus non-citizens were bound for Canada as their final destination.
Ukraine International Airlines said all 167 passengers and nine crew members onboard the plane died in the crash. Names of the passengers who were onboard Flight PS752 have been released by the airline.
Here are some of the B.C. residents among those on Flight PS752.
Langara College student Delaram Dadashnejad, 26, was identified as one of the victims by Iran‘s ISNA news agency after the student’s B.C. identity card was found among the wreckage.
Langara president Dr. Lane Trotter said Dadashnejad was an international student taking university transfer classes, and was flying home to Vancouver after a visit with family in Tehran.
“On behalf of the Langara College community, I would like to offer our deepest condolences to the family and friends of Delaram Dadashnejad,” Trotter said in a statement.
“The loss of one of our students is one that impacts our entire community. Our Counselling and International Education team will be providing support for our students, while staff and faculty have access to our Employee and Family Assistance Program.
“We are heartbroken over the fatal tragedy that took place; our thoughts and prayers are with those in mourning from this incident.”
B.C. student Delaram Dadashnejad has been named as one of the victims in Wednesday’s plane crash in Tehran.
Arash Azrahimi, who owns Rosewood Photography in North Vancouver, said some of the victims were his clients, including a mother, Ayeshe Pourghaderi, 36, and her daughter Fatemeh Pasavand, 17, who lived in North Vancouver.
They are survived by husband/father Amir Pasavand, who owns Amir Bakery on Lonsdale Avenue.
A vigil was planned at the bakery on Wednesday evening.
From left to right Ayeshe Pourghaderi, Amir Pasavand and their daughter Fatemeh Pasavand.
Also from North Vancouver and killed in the crash were Dr. Firouzeh Madani and Dr. Naser Pourshabanoshibi.
Madani immigrated to Canada from Iran in September 2013 with her husband and daughter.
In an archived blog post on the New To BC website, Madani was interviewed about her experience working to transfer her medical skills and qualifications to Canada.
“For my husband and I, the biggest challenge faced was finding a job, but the other issue we faced was the fact that our daughter was starting high school in a foreign country,” she said.
In 2015, Madani had taken one of the required three exams that would allow her to begin practicing medicine in Canada. The blog post also spoke about Madani’s support from MOSAIC and Back in Motion – Skills Connect in order to secure work after immigrating. Madani had also spent time working with the North Vancouver City Library as a library champion.
Majid Mahichi, who runs Persian television studio Parvaz TV, is a childhood friend of Pourshabanoshibi who reconnected with him after the latter immigrated in 2013.
“He was one of the top students in town,” said Mahichi. “They decided to upgrade their education in Canada so they moved to a better life here.”
Mahichi said Pourshabanoshibi was kind and highly focused on education.
“Always thinking about a good future, you know? That’s why he moved to Canada, to have a better life,” he told Postmedia.
They are survived by their daughter Kimia Pourshaban Oshibi.
Dr. Naser Pourshabanoshibi and Dr. Firouzeh Madani were aboard Flight PS752 when it crashed shortly after takeoff in Tehran.
North Vancouver couple Mohammad Hossein (Daniel) Saket and Fatemeh Kazerani also died, according to relative Farzad Taheri. Taheri said Saket, born in 1986, was an engineer and Kazerani, born in 1987, was a dental hygienist.
A photo of the couple, along with a notebook where people could write their memories and condolences, sat on the counter of a North Vancouver development on which Saket had worked. Saket’s employer, Denna Homes, planned to hold a memorial on Saturday.
Vancouver couple Mohammad Hossein (Daniel) Saket and Fatemeh Kazerani were killed in a plane crash Wednesday in Tehran.
Three members of a Port Coquitlam family have also been identified as victims – husband and wife Ardalan Ebnoddin-Hamidi and Niloofar Razzaghi, and their teenaged son Kamyar Ebnoddin-Hamidi.
Shahram Hamraz of Coquitlam knew the family through the Tri-City Iranian Cultural Society, an organization where Ardalan, the husband and father, served as a board member.
Hamraz described the family as “very positive in the community.”
“They were so active in our community… and it’s a small community,” Hamraz said. “So it is a loss, really.”
Ardalan Evnoddin-Hamidi, 48, Niloofar Razzaghi, 45, and, Hamyar Ebnoddin Hamidi, 15, of Coquitlam were among the passengers killed when Ukrainian airliner crashed shortly after take-off from Tehran on Wednesday.
Brother and sister Zeynab Asadi Lari and Mohammad Asadi Lari, both former UBC students, also died in the crash.
According to social media posts, the brother and sister have recently been living in the Toronto area.
UBC president and vice-chancellor Santa Ono said Zeynab enrolled at UBC in 2016 in the Bachelor of Science program, with a biology major, while Mohammad graduated in 2018 with a Bachelor of Science in cellular, anatomical and physiological sciences with honours standing.
Mohammad was also co-founder of the STEM fellowship, a youth-run Canadian non-profit organization that uses mentors to give students skills in data science and scholarly writing.
“On behalf of the UBC community, I wish to express my deepest condolences to their family, friends and loved ones,” Ono said in a statement. “This is a challenging time for UBC’s Iranian students, faculty and staff and we understand developments internationally and domestically in Iran are a cause of deep concern for them.”
Former UBC student Zeynab Asadi Lari was among the victims of the plane crash Wednesday in Tehran. She was studying in Vancouver.
Former UBC student Mohammad Asadi Lari was among the passengers killed when Ukrainian airliner crashed shortly after take-off from Tehran on Wednesday.
Roja Omidbakhsh, born 1996, is listed on a passenger list released by the airline.
Saul Klein, dean and professor of the University of Victoria’s Gustavson School of Business, confirmed Omidbakhsh was a first-year commerce student.
Mark Colgate, who taught a first-year commerce class at UVic last term, said that Omidbakhsh was in his class.
Colgate said there were about 300 students in the class, so he didn’t know Omidbakhsh well. However, the professor did meet with her a few times.
“She was smiling and was positive,” said Colgate. “I know she had a keen interest in marketing and she was more mature student and that came across.”
Times Colonist
B.C. Premier John Horgan said the province joins with nations around the world in “mourning this tragic loss of life.”
We woke up to devastating news that 176 people were killed in a plane crash in Iran. We've learned that British Columbians are among the 63 Canadians who were killed.
Our hearts and thoughts are with families and friends of loved ones lost & the Iranian-Canadian community in BC. https://t.co/JZY0JCgoSj
President of Langara College Lane Trotter offered condolences to the family of Dadashnejad on behalf of the community at Langara.
Trotter said Delaram was an international student taking university transfer classes, and was flying home to Vancouver after a visit with family in Tehran.
“The loss of one of our students is one that impacts our entire community. Our Counselling and International Education team will be providing support for our students, while staff and faculty have access to our Employee and Family Assistance Program,” Trotter said, in a statement.
“We are heartbroken over the fatal tragedy that took place; our thoughts and prayers are with those in mourning from this incident.”
B.C. Liberal Leader Andrew Wilkinson said he was “deeply saddened by the news” and offered condolences to the families.
“My thoughts and condolences are with the loved ones of everyone who was on board Flight 752. We do know some of those lost were from British Columbia’s Persian community, and we are offering our support to the entire community during this terrible time,” he said, in a statement Wednesday.
“On behalf of the entire BC Liberal Caucus, I want to extend my deepest and most sincere sympathies to the friends and loved ones of all the passengers and flight crew.”
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said he was “shocked and saddened” and said the Canadian government will work closely with its international partners to ensure that this crash is thoroughly investigated.
Heartbreaking news from Tehran this morning: 176 people, including 63 Canadians, have lost their lives in a tragic plane crash. My thoughts are with all those who are mourning the loss of family members, friends, and loved ones. https://t.co/rSTTbGj0oG
— With files from Reuters
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that 67 Canadians died in the plane crash.